I’ll Show You Mine if You Show Me Yours

There’s sort of an informal round of fun fur show and tell going on among some of my favorite blogs. It all started with Bells, then Sweet P, both of whom share objects knit in the very same “dead Muppet fur”. I thought I could honestly say I have never touched the stuff, then I remembered a certain gift I received from my mother in law when I first started knitting.

She has been a generous supporter of my craft from the beginning, gifting me yarn and patterns regularly. Recently she’s been giving me locally grown and spun yarns from her neck of the woods in Michigan, which is a lot of fun. Such was not the case in the beginning, however.

It all started with a mysterious pattern for a knitted bag. For Christmas I received a kit which included a photocopied pattern with handwritten notes on it and the yarns required: one skein of Patons Classic Merino, and a few yards of 3 types of fun fur bunched together. Clearly someone at her LYS had been busy putting together these kits, which makes me think there may be more of these bags out there…

I was speechless. Not only was the bag not my style, I just had no interest in making it! As the months passed she would periodically ask if I had made it yet, so eventually I felt I needed to bite the needles and get it done. At the time I was participating in some knitterly swaps over at swapbot and came across a handmade bag swap. It seemed to be the perfect solution, and I could always tell my mother in law that I made it and gave it to a “friend.”

The instructions were mysterious at best, but I pieced together a reasonable facsimile and came up with this.

In a surprising turn of events, it was a fun project to knit, and I learned some new skills. At that point in my knitting career I had never felted anything, made a bag, or used novelty yarn, so it was satisfying in that regard. I also learned that when you hold a strand of wool together with a strand of fur, they felt together well. Not something I’ve used since, but still a good bit of information to have.

In the end it was nice that I got to share the photo with my MIL, thus satisfying her curiosity. It was also satisfying to me to send it off to someone who ended up liking it. Everyone wins!

What interesting yarns do you have lurking in your knitting or crochet past? Have you made or received a project that makes you wonder “What was I thinking?” I’d love to hear about them, and if you’re moved to share photos on your blog I will definitely be there to point and laugh commiserate.

oh isn’t it hard when you are given something you feel obliged to use or make? Hard stuff, but you did it and you did well! In the scheme of things, it’s not bad. And as you say, it went to a good home, so all’s well!

Hello there!

Welcome! My name is Sonia and I am an avid knitter, mama of 2, and local yarn shop owner. Join me as I write about running a small business, exploring my creative pursuits, reading, parenting, gardening, and whatever else strikes my fancy.

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